Twenty-One (also called Blackjack) is a game of chance between a dealer and one or more players. The object is for the player to achieve a count on his hand of 21 or, at least, closer to 21 than the count of the hand of the dealer; but if the count of the player's hand goes over 21 then the player loses regardless of the final count of the dealer's hand.
The conventional manner of play of Twenty-One is as follows: A standard deck of playing cards is used and each card counts its face value, except Aces which have a value of one or eleven according to house rules for the dealer's hand, or player discretion on the player's hand. Each player initially receives two cards. The dealer also receives two cards. One of the dealer's cards is dealt face down and the other of the dealer's cards is dealt face-up. In some gaming establishments, the dealer receives his two cards at the same time that each player is dealt his two cards. In other gaming establishments, the dealer initially only receives one card which becomes the dealer's "up" card. After each player has taken additional cards, the dealer then receives his second card.
A player may draw additional cards (take "hits") in order to try and improve the player's hand. If the player's count exceeds 21, the player "busts." The player may "stand" on any count of 21 or less. When a player busts, he loses his wager regardless of whether or not the dealer busts.
After all of the players have taken hits or have stood on their hand, the dealer "stands" or "hits" based on pre-established rules for the game. Typically, if the dealer has less than 17, the dealer must take a hit. If the dealer has 17 or more, the dealer stands.
As the game of Twenty-One is played in most legalized gaming establishments, the conventional manner of play requires the dealer to take a hit whenever the dealer's hand is a "soft 17" count. However in other gaming establishments, the dealer stands on a "soft 17" count. The term "soft" means that the Ace is valued as a count of 11, instead of as a count of 1. A soft 17 occurs when the dealer has an Ace and a Six (or multiple cards that add up to 6). The dealer will stand on soft 18's, soft 19's and soft 20's.
After the dealer's final hand has been established, the numerical count of the dealer's hand is compared to the numerical count of the player's hand. If the dealer busts, the player wins regardless of the numerical count of his hand. If neither the player nor the dealer have busted, the closest hand to a numerical count of 21, without going over, wins; tie hands are a "push."
There are other procedures that are included in the conventional manner of play of Twenty-One. One well-known procedure is "Doubling Down." If the player's first two cards have a combined value of 10 or 11, the player may "double down" on his hand. The player turns both of his cards face-up in front of him and makes a second wager equal to the amount of his initial ante. The dealer deals to the player one additional card and the resulting three card hand establishes the numerical count for the player's hand. The most widely used "Doubling Down" rules permit the player to "double down" only on 10 or 11 counts. Other variations allow players to "double down" on 9, 10 or 11; only on 11; or on any two cards.
Another well-known procedure is "Splitting Pairs." If the player's first two cards are a pair, the player may "split" those cards into two separate hands. His original ante is applied to one of the hands and he makes an additional ante for the other hand. The player receives a new second card for each of the split hands. Each of the split hands is played separately and the player proceeds by standing or taking hits until he has achieved a hand count upon which he wishes to stand or busts.
The player may "double down" on either or both of his split hands if he is eligible to do so under the "Doubling Down" rules. The player may split again if he pairs up on either or both of his split hands. In most gaming establishments, a player may also split his hand if both of his initial cards are ten count cards (Tens, Jacks, Queens or Kings). For example, a player can split if he receives a Ten and a Queen, or a Jack and a King, or any combination of ten count cards. Because a hand count of 20 is a good hand to have, most experienced Twenty-One players are reluctant to risk such a hand by "splitting".
Another well-known procedure is "Insurance." If the dealer's up card is an Ace, the player may make an additional "insurance" bet. The insurance bet is made after each player receives his first two cards and the dealer reveals his up card and before any additional cards are dealt. When the dealer's up card is an Ace, each player can wager one-half of the amount of his original ante as insurance against the dealer having a Blackjack, i.e. a two-card 21 count (an Ace and a 10 count card such as a King, Queen, Jack or Ten). If the dealer has a two-card 21 count, the player wins two-to-one odds on his "insurance" bet. Also if the dealer has a two-card 21 count, that round of the game is over and all players lose except those who also have two-card 21 counts who tie or "push" with the dealer. If the dealer does not have a two-card 21 count, the player loses on his "insurance" bet and the round of the game continues. Insurance bets are only permitted when the dealer's "up" card is an Ace.
Another well-known variation of Twenty-One is the "Surrender" feature. After the player receives his first two cards and the dealer's "up" card has been shown, the player may surrender. The player folds his hand and loses one-half of his bet.
As used in this disclosure and the accompanying claims, the terms "conventional Twenty-One" and "the conventional manner of play of Twenty-One" mean the game of Twenty-One as previously described and also including any of the known variations of the game of Twenty-One.
There have been a few modifications proposed to the basic game, but none of these modifications have achieved universal popularity. For example, in the conventional Twenty-One game, the dealer shows one (the "up" card) of his first two cards and the other card (the "hole" card) is kept hidden until all the players have drawn to their hands. One modification involves the dealer showing both of his cards face up before the players draw. This improves the player's odds of winning and the payout odds have been modified to adjust for this change so that the house's advantage remains.
Recently a Twenty-One game known as "Royal Match 21" has been introduced. A player makes a separate bet to be eligible for the Royal Match feature of the game. If the player's first two cards are of the same suit, the player is an instant winner and receives whatever the posted payout is. If the player's first two cards are the Ace and King of the same suit, the player wins whatever the posted Royal Match payout is. The separate Royal Match bets are placed in a separate jackpot and the player wins half of the jackpot amount for a Royal Match. The house retains the remainder of the jackpot.
Another recently introduced Twenty-One game is "Fortune Card 21." In this game, extra Fortune Cards of various colors are added to a standard playing deck of cards. Whenever a Fortune Card is dealt, each player has the option of making a separate Fortune Card bet. If the next card dealt is also a Fortune Card, each player who has made a Fortune Card bet is a winner. The amount won depends on the colors of the Fortune Cards. The separate Fortune Card bets are placed in a separate jackpot and the players win potions of the jackpot amount for winning Fortune Card events. One-half of the Fortune Card jackpot is retained by the house.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,861,041 (Jones et al.) discloses a Twenty-One game in which the player may make a separate bet at the beginning of the game in order to be eligible for a separate jackpot. Those players who have made this separate bet can win all of part of the jackpot if the player's cards correspond to certain predetermined hands. For example, if a player achieves four 5's and an Ace, the player can win 100% of the jackpot. If the player achieves an Ace, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six, the player wins 10% of the jackpot. Other combinations can pay other percentages or flat amounts from the jackpot. The amount of this side jackpot continues to progress until all or part of the jackpot is won by a player.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,174,579 to Griffith discloses a modification to Twenty-One in which the player makes a separate bet as to whether the dealer will bust on his hand. This gives the player two chances to win on each deal of the cards--once on his hand and once if the dealer busts. The outcome of the player's own hand has no affect on the second bet involving whether the dealer busts on his hand.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a form of Twenty-One in which more play options are provided so that additional winning combinations are introduced into the play of the game.
It is a feature of the present invention to provide a standard deck of playing cards with one or more Jokers that can be used in a variety of different ways during the play of Twenty-One.
It is an advantage of the present invention that the number of options of the game of Twenty-One has been increased, there are more winning combinations and more excitement and unpredictability have been introduced into the game.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description.